| In effective learning environments, assessment and instruction are inexorably linked (Spandel & Stiggins, 1990, p. ix). |
Assessment is the act of gathering information on a daily basis in order to understand individual students' learning and needs.
Evaluation is the culminating act of interpreting the information gathered for the purpose of making decisions or judgements about students' learning and needs, often at reporting time.
Assessment and evaluation are integral components of the teaching-learning cycle. The main purposes are to guide and improve learning and instruction. Effectively planned assessment and evaluation can promote learning, build confidence, and develop students' understanding of themselves as learners.
Assessment data assists the teacher in planning and adapting for further instruction. As well, teachers can enhance students' understanding of their own progress by involving them in gathering their own data, and by sharing teacher-gathered data with them. Such participation makes it possible for students to identify personal learning goals.
This curriculum advocates assessment and evaluation procedures which correspond with curriculum objectives and instructional practices, and which are sensitive to the developmental characteristics of early adolescents. Observation, conferencing, oral and written product assessment, and process (or performance) assessment may be used to gather information about student progress.
The following principles are intended to assist teachers in planning for student assessment and evaluation:
Using a variety of techniques and tools, the teacher collects assessment information about students' language development and their growth in speaking, listening, writing, and reading knowledge and abilities. The data gathered during assessment becomes the basis for an evaluation. Comparing assessment information to curriculum objectives allows the teacher to make a decision or judgement regarding the progress of a student's learning.
There are three types of assessment and evaluation that occur regularly throughout the school year: diagnostic, formative, and summative.
Diagnostic assessment and evaluation usually occur at the beginning of the school year and before each unit of study. The purposes are to determine students' knowledge and skills, their learning needs, and their motivational and interest levels. By examining the results of diagnostic assessment, teachers can determine where to begin instruction and what concepts or skills to emphasize. Diagnostic assessment provides information essential to teachers in selecting relevant learning objectives and in designing appropriate learning experiences for all students, individually and as group members. Keeping diagnostic instruments for comparison and further reference enables teachers and students to determine progress and future direction.
Diagnostic assessment tools such as the Writing Strategies Questionnaire and the Reading Interest/Attitude Inventory in this guide can provide support for instructional decisions.
Formative assessment and evaluation focus on the processes and products of learning. Formative assessment is continuous and is meant to inform the student, the parent/guardian, and the teacher of the student's progress toward the curriculum objectives. This type of assessment and evaluation provides information upon which instructional decisions and adaptations can be made and provides students with directions for future learning.
Involvement in constructing their own assessment instruments or in adapting ones the teacher has made allows students to focus on what they are trying to achieve, develops their thinking skills, and helps them to become reflective learners. As well, peer assessment is a useful formative evaluation technique. For peer assessment to be successful, students must be provided with assistance and the opportunity to observe a model peer assessment session. Through peer assessment students have the opportunity to become critical and creative thinkers who can clearly communicate ideas and thoughts to others. Instruments such as checklists or learning logs, and interviews or conferences provide useful data.
Summative assessment and evaluation occur most often at the end of a unit of instruction and at term or year end when students are ready to demonstrate achievement of curriculum objectives. The main purposes are to determine knowledge, skills, abilities, and attitudes that have developed over a given period of time; to summarize student progress; and to report this progress to students, parents/guardians, and teachers.
Summative judgements are based upon criteria derived from curriculum objectives. By sharing these objectives with the students and involving them in designing the evaluation instruments, teachers enable students to understand and internalize the criteria by which their progress will be determined.
Often assessment and evaluation results provide both formative and summative information. For example, summative evaluation can be used formatively to make decisions about changes to instructional strategies, curriculum topics, or learning environment. Similarly, formative evaluation assists teachers in making summative judgements about student progress and determining where further instruction is necessary for individuals or groups. The suggested assessment techniques included in various sections of this guide may be used for each type of evaluation.
Teachers as decision makers strive to make a close match between curriculum objectives, instructional methods, and assessment techniques. The evaluation process carried out parallel to instruction is a cyclical one that involves four phases: preparation, assessment, evaluation, and reflection.
In the preparation phase, teachers decide what is to be evaluated, the type of evaluation to be used (diagnostic, formative, or summative), the criteria upon which student learning outcomes will be judged, and the most appropriate assessment techniques for gathering information on student progress. Teachers may make these decisions in collaboration with students.
During the assessment phase, teachers select appropriate tools and techniques, then collect and collate information on student progress. Teachers must determine where, when, and how assessments will be conducted, and students must be consulted and informed.
During the evaluation phase, teachers interpret the assessment information and make judgements about student progress. These judgements (or evaluation) provide information upon which teachers base decisions about student learning and report progress to students and parents/guardians. Students are encouraged to monitor their own learning by evaluating their achievements on a regular basis. Encouraging students to participate in evaluation nurtures gradual acceptance of responsibility for their own progress and helps them to understand and appreciate their growth as readers and writers.
The reflection phase allows teachers to consider the extent to which the previous phases in the evaluation process have been successful. Specifically, teachers evaluate the utility, equity, and appropriateness of the assessment techniques used. Such reflection assists teachers in making decisions concerning improvements or adaptations to subsequent instruction and evaluation.
When implementing assessment and evaluation procedures, it is valuable to consider the characteristics of early adolescents. Developmentally, Middle Level students are at various cognitive, emotional, social, and physical levels. Assessment and evaluation must be sensitive to this range of transitions and address individual progress. It is unrealistic and damaging to expect students who are at various stages of development to perform at the same level. It is necessary to clarify, for Middle Level students, the individual nature of the curriculum and the assessment strategies used; students should recognize that they are not being compared to their peers, but that they are setting their own learning goals in relation to curriculum objectives.
Insensitive evaluation of the early adolescent can result in the student feeling low self-worth and wanting to give up. Regular, positive feedback is a valuable part of the learning process and helps students identify how well they have achieved individual goals and curriculum objectives. As students begin to achieve success, their sense of self-esteem increases and the need for extrinsic rewards gives way to the development of intrinsic motivation.
Early adolescents are vulnerable to peer approval or rejection, and they harbour a strong sense of fairness and justice. Because Middle Level students find it more satisfying to strive for immediately achievable goals rather than long-term goals, they will respond positively to a system of continuous assessment and evaluation.
Effective evaluators of Middle Level students are astute observers who use a variety of monitoring techniques to collect information about students' knowledge, skills, attitudes, values, and language competencies. Well organized, concise, and accessible records accommodate the large quantities of data likely to be collected, and assist teachers' decision making and reporting.
Some effective techniques for monitoring student progress in the areas of oracy and literacy include the following:
Self-assessment promotes students' abilities to assume more responsibility for their own learning by encouraging self-reflection and encouraging them to identify where they believe they have been successful and where they believe they require assistance. Discussing students' self-assessments with them allows the teacher to see how they value their own work and to ask questions that encourage students to reflect upon their experiences and set goals for new learning.
Peer assessment allows students to collaborate and learn from others. Through discussions with peers, Middle Level students can verbalize their concerns and ideas in a way that helps them clarify their thoughts and decide in which direction to proceed.
The instruments for peer and self-assessment should be collaboratively constructed by teachers and students. It is important for teachers to discuss learning objectives with the students. Together, they can develop assessment and evaluation criteria relevant to the objectives, as well as to students' individual and group needs.
Assessment data can be collected and recorded by both the teacher and the students in a variety of ways. Through observation of students, and in interviews or conferences with students, teachers can discover much about their students' knowledge, abilities, interests, and needs. As well, teachers can collect samples of students' work in portfolios and conduct performance assessments within the context of classroom activities. When a number of assessment tools are used in conjunction with one another, richer and more in-depth data collection results. Whatever method of data collection is used, teachers should:
Observation occurs during students' daily reading, writing, listening, and speaking experiences. It is an unobtrusive means by which teachers (and students) can determine their progress during learning. Observations can be recorded as anecdotal notes, and on checklists or rating scales. When teachers attach the data collection sheets to a hand-held clipboard, data can be recorded immediately and with little interruption to the student. Alternatively, adhesive note papers can be used to record data quickly and unobtrusively.
Anecdotal Records
Anecdotal records are notes written by the teacher regarding student language, behaviour, or learning. They document and describe significant daily events, and relevant aspects of student activity and progress. These notes can be taken during student activities or at the end of the day. Formats for collection should be flexible and easy to use.
Guidelines for use include the following:
Teachers may choose to keep running written observations for each student or they may use a more structured approach, constructing charts that focus each observation on the collection of specific data. A combination of open-ended notes and structured forms may also be used. It is important to date all observations recorded.
Checklists
Observation checklists, usually completed while students are engaged in specific activities or processes, are lists of specific criteria that teachers focus on at a particular time or during a particular process. Checklists are used to record whether students have acquired specific knowledge, skills, processes, abilities, and attitudes. Checklists inform teachers about where their instruction has been successful and where students need assistance or further instruction. Formats for checklists should be varied and easy to use.
Guidelines for using checklists include the following:
Rating Scales and Rubrics
Rating scales record the extent to which specific criteria have been achieved by the student or are present in the student's work. Rating scales also record the quality of the student's performance at a given time or within a given process. Rating scales are similar to checklists, and teachers can often convert checklists into rating scales by assigning number values to the various criteria listed. They can be designed as number lines or as holistic scales or rubrics. Rubrics include criteria that describe each level of the rating scale and are used to determine student progress in comparison to these expectations. All formats for rating student progress should be concise and clear.
Guidelines for use include the following:
Portfolios are collections of relevant work that reflect students' individual efforts, development, and progress over a designated period of time. Portfolios provide students, teachers, parents, and administrators with a broad picture of each student's growth over time, including the student's abilities, knowledge, skills, and attitudes. Students should be involved in the selection of work to be included, goal setting for personal learning, and self-assessment. The teacher can encourage critical thinking by having students decide which of their works to include in their portfolios and explain why they chose those particular items. Instruction and assessment are integrated as students and teachers collaborate to compile relevant and individual portfolios for each student.
Guidelines for use include the following:
Formats for portfolio assembly should be easily organized, stored, and accessed. Some possibilities include the following:
Evaluating Student Portfolios
At the end of the term/semester/year when the portfolio is submitted for summative evaluation, it is useful to review the contents as a whole and record data using the previously set criteria. One method of recording data is to prepare a grid with the criteria listed down one side and the checklist or rating scale across the top. If there is need to assign a numerical grade, designate numbers to each set of criteria on the checklist/rating scale and convert the evaluation into a number grade. Some examples of portfolio assessment and recording forms follow. The teacher can adapt these sample forms or create new ones.
Portfolio Table of Contents: Sample Recording Form
Portfolio Assessment: Sample Rating Scale
Sample Portfolio Assessment: Selection of Portfolio Items
Student Reflection: Sample Self-Assessment
Portfolio Item: Sample Collaborative Form
Sample Product Assessment: Descriptive Paragraph
Sample Anecdotal Record Form for Small Group Learning
Teacher-student interviews or conferences are productive means of assessing individual achievement and needs. During these discussions, teachers can discover students' perceptions of their own processes and products of learning. Brief conferences can occur while students are reading, writing, listening, and speaking; extended interviews about their processes and products can be structured into each class period. When teachers ask questions that promote student reflection upon what they understand and how they work and learn, the rich data collected can support instructional decisions. Interview questions can be developed to meet the needs of specific students and to fit the curriculum objectives.
Examples of questions that help students reflect upon their speaking, listening, and viewing experiences include the following:
Examples of questions to ask during a student's writing process include the following:
Criteria should be developed and/or discussed with students at the outset of activities such as written reports, visual representations, oral presentations, or projects which combine more than one aspect of language use and understanding. Teachers may assess the attitudes, skill development, knowledge, or learning processes demonstrated by students as they engage in language activities. Data gathered during student activities can be recorded as anecdotal notes, on checklists, rating scales, or by using a combination of these.
Quizzes, tests, and examinations are most often used for assessing students' knowledge of content; however, they may be used to assess processes, skills, and attitudes. Tests, whether they are oral or written, must represent students' achievements as accurately as possible. Formats for test items should be varied; each type is most effective at assessing and evaluating student progress when used in conjunction with the other types.
Guidelines for use include the following:
Evaluation at the end of the unit or term is facilitated by continuous assessment. One way that summative evaluation may be determined is by assigning a percentage to each of the language processes. The percentages may vary from one unit to the next, depending upon which of the processes is being emphasized. One possible example follows. It is important to make students aware of the final evaluation components prior to beginning the unit or term and, if it is appropriate, to involve them in determining these components.
| Writing: 30-40% Consider the following: Has all written work been submitted? Are all pre-writing, drafts, final drafts, peer/teacher/self-conferencing and editing records, and required checklists included in the submitted portfolio? Are personal spelling lists up-to-date and used as instructed? Each genre has certain criteria. Writing should be assessed according to criteria that are known to the students or developed with the help of the students. What improvements are evident from the first draft to the last, or from the first piece of writing to the latest? At the end of the unit, teachers could have students review their portfolio collections to select their best two or three pieces for grading according to specific criteria. |
Reading: 30-40% Consider the following: Have all Independent reading requirements been met? Have the agreed upon or assigned genres and number of selections been chosen and read? Are Vocabulary Logs up-to-date and used as instructed? Have Reading Logs been kept up-to-date and accurate? Have requirements for guided reading been fulfilled? Are Reader Response Journals up-to-date? What progress have students made in responding interpretively and critically? |
| Speaking and Listening: 30-40% Checklists, rating scales, and anecdotal notes used throughout the lessons can provide information about the students' oral progress. Oral presentations and incidental observations provide opportunities to gather information about students' listening and speaking abilities. A rubric which includes performance criteria can be useful for setting a mark for each student. Students should be aware of the expectations at each level. Speaking or listening may be more heavily emphasized depending upon the particular unit or activities. Teachers, possibly in collaboration with their students, will determine the way that the unit will be evaluated; however, it is important that students know from the beginning how they will be assessed and evaluated. |
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In order to communicate student progress to parents, teachers are usually expected to issue report cards at regular intervals during the school year. This curriculum advocates the use of descriptive reports to communicate progress to students, parents, and administrators. These reports, which describe student achievements in all language processes, may accompany or replace traditional reporting procedures that usually include a letter or number grade. Descriptive comments convey richer information about all aspects of language use and development, and are less likely to be misinterpreted than a single letter or numerical grade. It is essential to use student portfolio collections and teacher assessments in formulating the report card description and assigned mark.
It is important to communicate with parents early in the school term or semester, and continue this communication through regular letters and telephone calls, parent classroom visits, and parent-teacher or student-led parent-teacher interviews. At the beginning of the school year or term, the following can be communicated to parents:
When conducting parent-teacher interviews, it is important to make available to parents, and discuss with them, actual records of their child's performance (e.g., checklists, anecdotal notes, portfolio contents). It can be very effective if students are present to lead the interview and take part in the discussion of their progress, achievements, and areas of need.